Pretty Girls All In A Row

Cristina “Mamma Mia” – Cristina Monet and August Darnell throw the listener headlong into a world of sparkling fabulousness within the first few seconds of “Mamma Mia,” but they quickly raise the stakes, pushing the song to delirious heights of ecstasy and glamor. Monet’s second album was mainly concerned with portraying its wealthy characters as decadent, miserable creeps, but this is not nearly as dark or cynical. It’s good-hearted fantasy of ritzy elegance, and though the song is knowingly kitschy, its enthusiasm and awe is entirely genuine. This isn’t about money, it’s about limitless pleasure. (Click here to buy it from Ze Records.)

Ludus “Breaking The Rules” – …and this one’s about the limits we place on our pleasure. I’d say that “Breaking The Rules” makes a better case for a combination of romantic commitment and bisexual polyamory better than any song I’ve ever heard, but I can’t think of any other tunes that cover the same lyrical territory, much less anything so cheery and danceable. It’s not pushy or didactic, but rather open-minded, generous, assertive, and eager to balance its pursuit of excitement and expression with stability and a political agenda. (Click here to buy it from Crippled Dick Hot Wax.)

Elsewhere: My new Hit Refresh column is up on the ASAP site with mp3s from Architecture In Helsinki, Alter Ego, and Plastique De Reve.

Also: My opinion of Rilo Kiley’s new material is exactly the reverse of Kate Richardson’s, but either way she is correct: There is clearly a connection between how much leg Jenny Lewis shows and the quality of her music.

And: Kate Richardson is having a moment — she also commissioned a video for Tiger Tunes’ “Pancake America.”